Sony BDP-S350 Review

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A solid BD Live-enabled standalone player for a reasonable price.

By Scott Lowe

As Sony's most modestly priced BD Live-enabled Blu-ray player, the BDP-S350 is likely to be one of the holiday season's hottest commodities. With an MSRP of $299.99, down $100 since it was introduced this summer, the BDP-S350 is the first Sony Blu-ray player to cost less than the PlayStation 3. The PlayStation 3 is still a killer value--after all, you can play games on it—but the BDP-S350 is among the first in a new generation of affordable Blu-ray solutions. The sub-$300 price point is ideal for non-gamers or diehard Xbox 360 fans that refuse to buy a PlayStation 3, but how does the BDP-S350 perform? Read on for our full review.

First off, the Sony BDP-S350 is much more aesthetically pleasing than comparable models from Sony's competitors. The player's metallic blue wraparound faceplate is vastly more appealing than the gloss black finish that seems to be so common in Blu-ray hardware these days. To be fair, there is very little room to work with within the product type, the line between stylized and novelty is very thin when it comes to disc players, Blu-ray or otherwise. While the metallic blue faceplate is more eye-catching than comparable models, the front-mounted control interface is not. Sony took a very minimalist approach with the built-in controls, limiting options between play, pause, and stop. The drive and disc tray are concealed by a large flip down panel, which also covers the LCD info display. The LCD beams through a semi-transparent plastic cutaway in the panel, which maintains the streamlined blue aesthetic while still delivering the necessary playback info, such as chapter number and time.

As for input and output options, the BDP-S350 gives users all of the standard connection options:

Component out

HDMI out

Stereo RCA out

Composite out

Optical audio out

Coaxial audio out

S-Video out

The BDP-S350 is lacking DVI support, although those looking to connect the player to a DVI display can always acquire an HDMI-to-DVI adapter. The remaining ports on the player are a standard Ethernet port for connecting to your home network and a single USB port for external storage devices. Both are located on the back of the unit, and while this benefits the Ethernet connection, it makes accessing the USB port difficult. For users with densely populated entertainment centers, a rear-mounted USB port is near impossible to gain access to. To make matters worse, the USB port is recessed into the back of the device, making it even harder to access. The ideology behind the recessed port is that it will reduce the protrusion of any attached USB memory stick, however, the space provided is such that bulkier memory sticks cannot fit.

The purpose of the USB port is to makeup for the BDP-S350's lack of built-in memory. In order to download firmware updates and access certain downloadable BD Live content, users must attach an external memory device. A relatively cheap 1GB USB memory stick will suffice for most users, but those more interested in BD Live content should invest in a USB device with larger storage capacity. Fortunately, there isn't enough compelling content available through BD Live to merit purchasing a pricey external hard drive. Most current-gen Blu-ray players are bigger than their standard definition predecessors, which is certainly a burden on the consumer adding yet another piece of hardware to their setup. Fortunately, the BDP-S350 is one of the smaller Blu-ray players we've used and seen. The real significant space saving comes from its depth, which is about 9" total.

On the performance side, the BDP-S350 plays like a dream. The XMB menus of the player itself are extremely easy to navigate, especially if you have experience with the PlayStation 3. The player handles full 1080p signals at 60 frames-per-second excellently, We tested the player with animated crowd pleaser Wall E, which really showed the quality of the BDP-S350. The picture quality is crisp and clear but the edges are smooth. We experienced none of the problems that entry-level Blu-ray players commonly have, such as overly sharp or dull edges. There seemed to be no noticeable signal degradation through transmission and picture quality was consistent even when blown up on large projection screens. The player also has incredible DVD upscaling that makes your standard definition titles look exponentially than they would on a regular upscaling DVD player.

For audio the BDP-S350 supports nearly every available encoding including Dolby Digital TrueHD, DTS, DTS-HD, and Dolby Digital Plus. The only major exclusion from the device is an on-board DTS-HD Master Audio decoder, which would have to be done by an external receiver. The absence of this format isn't exactly critical to most consumers, however, as audio/video connoisseurs wouldn't be in the market for a low-end Blu-ray player anyways.

Ultimately he BDP-S350 is a solid entry-level Blu-ray player. It is perfect for those looking for a quick, easy to use standalone player for a reasonable price. The device delivers top-notch picture and audio for those with screens and audio systems that can support it, and the operating speeds are far superior than competing models.